Private medical insurance

I won't castigate you Blossoming, it's not my place. But I will ask you to consider what would have happened you hadn't had that private insurance, but needed that care. If you'd been someone on minimum wage who had no option but to use the NHS. Maybe you wouldn't have made such a good recovery. How is that fair?

Sorry, sp..

We'll just have t agree to disagree, Alerias.

I think we need to pay more for the NHS.

In the firm I worked for top management had private medical insurance as a perk. We others could join the club, I think I paid around £80 a month in my 50s.

Alegrias1

Which bit Call?

It's how I feel and I won't change. No-one should be entitled to get better healthcare just because they are better off. It's a mystery to me why anyone thinks it's defensible.

It doesnt take resources from the NHS.

Consultants work their contracted hours.
What other resources are you thinking of?

I believe both systems can work side by side and there is often overlap as there is here when NHS patients are treated cross-border at a private facility.

A lot of firms offer private medical insurance and I'm glad you were able to make use of it Blossoming.

I'm shocked that you were castigated on here for doing so.

Which bit Call?

It's how I feel and I won't change. No-one should be entitled to get better healthcare just because they are better off. It's a mystery to me why anyone thinks it's defensible.

I had private medical treatment following my brain injury, and I have actually been castigated for it in Gransnet. However that’s another story. It wasn’t an NHS hospital, it wasn’t using NHS facilities and it wasn’t impacting any waiting lists.

Health insurance was part of my employment package, so not sure what it costs. They won’t usually cover you for existing conditions and they don’t generally carry on paying long term for chronic conditions. Check the details very carefully before going ahead.

Alegrias1

I'm sorry if this sounds harsh but I don't care if the consultants work for nothing for the NHS. If there is a private system then it takes resources from the NHS, it allows people to jump the queue and it normalises the fact that people who are a bit better off should be able to get better health care than those who are hard up.

Its immoral.

Bt it doesn't.

It’s totally wrong for Kali to say they work privately whilst being paid for the NHS. What hospital would allow that!

I've just read this:
and a huge proportion work for both NHS and the Private Sector- largely leaving the NHS work to Juniors, and spending much more time and effort on much more lucrative private work (still getting paid by NHS mind)

That is quite some allegation that they are doing private work n NHS time and I wonder if you have evidence for that, please, Kali2?

As far as our experiences go, we have always seen an NHS Consultant and rarely junior doctors unless as inpatients.

Incidentally, I don't agree with qualified and experienced doctors being termed Junior Doctors as if they are under-qualified; it covers those who are newly qualified in foundation phase through to experienced registrars.
It was changed a few years ago.

I'm sorry if this sounds harsh but I don't care if the consultants work for nothing for the NHS. If there is a private system then it takes resources from the NHS, it allows people to jump the queue and it normalises the fact that people who are a bit better off should be able to get better health care than those who are hard up.

Its immoral.

They are using NHS facilities though, aren't they? And they were trained by the NHS?

I have doctors in the family.

They are contracted to the NHS for the hours specified on their contracts. Like Callistemon says they do more because they don’t walk out halfway through a consultation or operation.

It’s totally wrong for Kali to say they work privately whilst being paid for the NHS. What hospital would allow that!

Awful how people will make things up and how easily total falsehoods get spread and repeated.

But then thats politics isn’t it?

Consultants have always worked in the NHS and private practice as far back as I remember (and I worked for the NHS in the 1960s). There were private areas in NHS hospitals in those days too.
They may well work longer than their contracted hours with the NHS as they are not likely to walk out on a patient mid-consultation or mid-surgery.

I've not had a problem getting existing conditions included, but obviously the premium is loaded to take into account the extra risk. We swap around from year to year to keep the costs down.

Apologies, I haven't read the whole thread, Bea65 but will a private health provider take you on for immediate treatment of an existing condition?

What happens if someone who has breathing difficulties after a private op needs an NHS bed that is scheduled to be used by an NHS patient who has been waiting for an operation?

I agree with posters who are saying the NHS is being run down. Be careful of private medical insurance, not only for pre existing conditions. It does not cover A and E, and private hospitals do not always have intensive care, so even if you have a routine operation but have breathing issues following anaesthetic you would need to be transferred to an NHS hospital. There have also been problems in getting compensation if the medical care is negligent.

Or, if you haven't got £100 - £200 to spend on something the government is meant to be providing for you anyway, cross your fingers and hope you don't get ill.

Its like The City and The City. Anyone ever read that? Two completely different societies existing in the same space, completely oblivious to each other.

Better than taking out expensive and wasteful health insurance. open a building society account or similar, mentally name it the Health Fund, and put in a lump of money every month. I would suggest £100 - £200 a month. It soon builds up. The money remains yours whether you need private health care or not and it can always be raided on a short term basis now and then when you have a bad onth.

Unfortunately you will not be covered for any pre existing conditions. I have private insurance but if I wished to change providers, my arthritis would not be covered.

As posted on the other thread

"That’s the standard technique of privatization: defund, make sure things don’t work, people get angry, you hand it over to private capital."

Noam Chomsky,

constant pain, and fear for our lives, multiply the effects.

Yes, even Thatcher knew it could not be done- and would require decades before it got so bad- people will be asking for it in despair, and pain, and fear.

Everyone needs to decide for themselves and you've been given lots of good advice here Bea65, I hope it helps you decide.

But anybody who tells you that anyone who can afford to pay for private health care should do just that, is misguided, I'm afraid. Paying for private health helps create a two-tier health service and doesn't just mean that more of the NHS is available for us paupers. (Or even those of us who are well off enough to choose the private system, but don't, and think its an abomination that needs to be got rid of right away.)

It makes my blood boil, as you may guess. Even Mrs Thatcher thought privatising the NHS was a step too far. Today's Tories will have her turning in her grave.

If you have frequent problems watch out BUPA substantially raise your monthly premiums annually. I found AXA PPP better in that respect, although they were more choosy about which consultants could be picked, wanting you to go for the cheaper ones. Get yourself a tailored plan to suit your needs. How much pain are you in? Can you save up enough to get an initial consultation at least?

Do NHS consultants really leave the juniors to do their NHS work back at the ranch while they are gaily seeing private patients? If you look at their clinic times at the private hospitals they are mainly evenings after 5pm and Saturdays, even Sundays.

They see privates in addition to NHS work to pay for their posh cars, expensive holidays, big houses and so on.

I too think there will be some kind of insurance system before long, the NHS isn't sustainable otherwise.

Systems in Germany and other European Health Insurance systems are very different to the ones emerging in UK. The main difference being that pre-existing conditions cannot be refused. It pays for a single room, larger TV, restaurant style menus, etc. which is fine, no problem with this.

Lincslass, irrational? How patronising.